Cockpit: A Second Chance Romance (35 page)

At least this didn't look like a uniform.

I smiled at my reflection in the mirror, not really caring that I looked like the plain Jane that I was. It didn't matter today. I had a strange sense of excitement at the thought of getting away from all of this.

I was going
out
.

Chapter Three

Nicholas

I stared around the room in the London townhouse. Even by Hollywood standards, it was spectacular. Thick rugs covered the dark wood floors. Heavy ornate furniture was scattered around the room, covered with velvets and thick brocades. I turned to the windows. There was a small park across the street, so even though we were in the heart of London, all you could see was green.

I heard someone come into the room and turned. A young blond woman was looking me over like I was a piece of meat. I let her look. I was used to it in my line of work. Usually, I didn't mind. But for some reason I didn't like it today.

I didn't like it from
her.

A pretty girl. But her eyes were hard. I always noticed the eyes. If she were my client, I would expect a lot of head games. I would definitely be 'too busy' to accommodate her. She would be demanding and selfish and a pain in the ass. I could tell right off the bat she was the clingy type.

A little bit crazy too.

"You're perfect."

I smiled politely. I was used to compliments from women. I knew I was good looking. For a long time, it was the only thing I'd had going for me.

Well, that and my other skills. I was good at reading people. And I knew my way around a woman's body.

But mostly it was about my cock.

"I'm Rebecca. And
you
are my brother's old friend from rowing camp."

She looked me up and down.

"You certainly have the physique for it."

I noticed she didn't offer me her hand before she sat. There were two of those strange tiny couches English people seemed to like flanking the fireplace. I sat across from her.

"I've rented you a suitable hotel suite. You are here to work on an ad campaign to save the bees or something appalling."

"Okay. Why the ornate cover story?"

She stared at me, her cold eyes calculating.

"This isn't an ordinary job. I need to know you are up to the task."

I leaned back. I wanted to know what the hell she had in mind. But I also wanted to know more about the girl in the photos. The beautiful girl with the long list of accomplishments and complete lack of sexual experience. According to the files, she was a virgin. She'd never even had a boyfriend. Some of that could be explained by attending an all-girls school, but it still seemed out of the ordinary.

The lovely Lady Rosalie.

"You'll need to be an actor. An activist. A rebel who takes her out of her comfort zone. But one with manners who can move seamlessly from one world to another."

I nodded.

"Of course. I can do that."

She smiled coldly.

"Good. You were highly recommended. I was told you had brains."

I didn't say anything. I just waited. I was finding this meeting excruciatingly uncomfortable for some reason. To put it plainly, the woman gave me the creeps.

She leaned forward, a conniving look on her face.

"You want to know why, don't you?"

I nodded. Yes, I fucking wanted to know why. A four to six week assignment. One woman. A beautiful, wealthy, brilliant young woman. It was unusual to say the least.
 

Rebecca smiled again. I was reminded of a reptile somehow. I was suddenly glad she hadn't shook my hand.

"She's a dear friend. I want her to be happy."

I narrowed my eyes at her. I was feeling more than skeptical. Not that I didn't want the assignment. It would be pleasant and profitable. And I wanted to fuck the girl if I was honest with myself. I had since I opened her file.

"She's that hard up?"

"She's completely untouched."

"Yeah, right."

"Oh, I assure you it's true. Never even been kissed properly. Trust me, she would have told me. She... doesn't have a lot of friends."

I frowned.

"Why? Is she socially awkward?"

She laughed.

"Well if being dull as dishwater is awkward, then yes. She's just a very obedient girl. I trust you can use that to your advantage."

I nodded. I liked the sound of that. I liked to be in control. My hands were already itching to get at her.

"Here's the kicker- I think it would really add to the experience if you left her with a little gift."

"What?"

She smiled, leaning back in her seat.

"A baby."

My face must have betrayed my shock.

"Come now, you can't object to skipping a condom. She's a virgin. It's not like she's going to give you anything."

I exhaled sharply.

"This is why you asked for my medical records."

She nodded.

"Don't worry. This will be a breeze. Boring perhaps, but you will be well compensated. Especially if you... seal the deal."

"And what about the baby thing? Is that really necessary? I'm not sure I really like the idea of leaving a kid without a dad."

She shrugged gracefully.

"The nobility overlook little things like children born out of wedlock all the time. She's so lonely. It will be good for her. Trust me, she'll take good care of it."

I knew it was wrong. But the thought of impregnating the girl had an undeniable appeal. I nodded curtly.

"Alright."

"Excellent. I know I can trust you to be discrete. And to disappear when the job is complete."

"I will."

The doorbell rang.

She smiled at me brightly.

"She's here."

Rosalie

I was giggling as I followed Rebecca into her library. I hadn't seen my cousin since last Christmas. She was always traveling here and there. And she didn't really come out to the country much.

She wasn't a big fan of nature.

That's why I'd been so confused when she asked to be involved in my latest charity idea. She knew how passionate I was about the environment, but that was definitely not her thing. I thought it was sweet that she wanted to spend time with me.

She'd barely paid me any attention until the last few years. We'd been forced together time and time again as children. I'd always looked up to her, even though she was only a year above me at school. She was always so sophisticated and seemed to know everything.

So yes, I'd been confused. But flattered. And thrilled to have an excuse to come into town without my parents hovering over my shoulder.

I walked into the library and froze.

A boy was standing by the fireplace.

No, not a boy. He was a
man.

Tall and broad. His elegant clothes were cut to perfection, clearly showing his exceptional physique. Simple but expensive. He looked like an athlete. Or a movie star. Or a movie star playing an athlete.

Who was I kidding?

He looked like a Greek God.

That was before he turned and looked at me. He had the most beautiful eyes I'd ever seen. And when he smiled, a jolt went through me.

A very, very big jolt.

Rebecca put her hand on my back and propelled me forward until I was standing in front of him.

He reached out his hand and enfolded my much smaller, possibly clammy hand. Another jolt. Followed by tingles.

Lots and lots of tingles.

"Rosie this is Nicholas. Nicholas, Rosalie."

She dropped herself into one of the seats, her long legs draping elegantly. But I was staring at Nicholas. He was still holding my hand I realized. I couldn't seem to pull away so I forced myself to speak.

"It's nice to meet you, Nicholas."

His smile widened.

"You as well."

Rebecca piped up.

"She's 'Lady Rosalie' technically. But you can call her Rosie. Right?"

I smiled and nodded. I hated the formality of my title. It kept people at a distance.
 

"Yes, of course."

He let go of my hand and I practically swayed towards him. I could feel the heat coming off his body in waves. It was overwhelming.

"Sit down you two. I'm getting a neck ache."

I sat down across from her. I noticed that Nicholas sat beside her. But not close. It was almost as if he was doing it so he could look at me.

"So. Bees. What are we doing? Please tell me there is a party involved."

She rolled her eyes at Nicholas. He seemed to be ignoring her. I felt warm, like his eyes were creating heat as he looked at me.

But that was crazy. Why would he look at me with Rebecca next to him? She was gorgeous. And I was... not.

Basically, I was a cup of milk and Rebecca was a flute of champagne.

Very expensive champagne.
 

"I do so love parties. Rosie is always trying to get out of attending them."

I pulled out my laptop and looked up. My heart seemed to leap in my chest. I'd been right.

H
e was
looking at me.

"Rosie, Nicholas has done some advertising stuff back in the states. He used to row with Blake. Some sort of training camp, right?"

He nodded, his eyes still focused on me. She reached out and grabbed his shoulder, squeezing it. He didn't react at all. I almost felt sorry for him. He was clearly more than his muscles.

Though he did have very nice muscles.

And so many of them.

"You still row, don't you? Not like my good for nothing brother."

Nicholas ignored her completely. I had never seen a man ignore Rebecca. I'd never seen
anyone
ignore Rebecca.

"What's the goal here? Raising awareness? Or actually changing something?"

I smiled at him. He got it. He was literally the first person I'd spoken to about this who seemed to get it.

"We want to put pressure on the chemical companies to stop producing damaging fungicides and weed killers. But we also want to reach people on the grass roots level."

"Right, so Aunt Betty knows to use something less toxic on her prized roses."

I laughed.

"Exactly."

Rebecca rolled her eyes.

"Aunt Betty. How American."

She stretched, arching her back seductively. I couldn't help but watch Nick's reaction. Once again, he didn't even glance at her. Rebecca didn't seem to care though.

"I'm bored, let's get out of here."

"But we've barely started."

"We can talk just as easily over a pint."

"Sounds good."

She winked at me. Nicholas seemed eager so I just shrugged.

"Whatever you want."

For some reason that seemed to put a gleam in his eye.

Chapter Four

Nicholas

What the hell had I gotten myself into?

I was sitting in a dingy old pub across from two very wealthy, very different young English beauties. Or beauty, anyway. I preferred the natural look to the overly polished, hard edge look that Rebecca embodied. Even if I hadn't been there on a job, I wouldn't have been able to take my eyes off of Rosalie.

The girl was... she was so sweet it was hard to believe she was real. But she
was
real. Not phony like her rich bitch friend or most of the women I knew in LA. If not for the accent, I would have thought she was just a simple country girl.

In a way, that's what she was.

A stunningly beautiful country girl who just happened to have what looked like spectacular tits. I'm talking off the charts, mouth wateringly juicy handfuls. It was hard to tell under her jacket, but I was a good judge when it came to tits. I was definitely a breast man. And I wanted to get my hands on hers.

Right fucking now.

That was a problem. My attraction to her was strong, and surprising. I didn't usually even think about whether I wanted a client. I just did my job. That's what made this dangerous.

I never mixed business with pleasure. In fact, I'd never really even had a girlfriend. Not since high school. I had a few long-term clients. But that was it. I felt a general attraction and affection for all women.

But nothing like this.

Not even close.

An attraction like this was an animal thing. I couldn't control it. That meant I couldn't control myself, or the situation. If I was supposed to bring her ultimate pleasure, I had to hold myself back. Be detached.

The way I was feeling, there was no way in hell that was happening. Not if I got my hands on her without cooling down significantly first. I had to find a way to
not
want her so badly. But it was hard to imagine that was going to happen. The combination of prim, proper and sweet combined with that slamming body. It was...
 

Bad. Very, very bad.

Her huge eyes were almost the size of the pint she was staring at. Rebecca was giving her a hard time, trying to get her to drink. Apparently, Rosie had never been in a pub before.

She looked startled. And adorably out of her element.
 

I wasn't sure if I wanted to hug her or fuck her first.

Hold that.

I wanted to fuck her first.

Definitely fuck.

But I realized that I wanted to hug her afterwards. She'd like that. I could spot a cuddler in an instant. She would need sweet talk and hand holding through the before, during and after.

The crazy thing was, I wouldn't mind. In fact, I think I wanted it too. Almost as much as I wanted to flip her onto the table and plow my cock into her.

Jesus Nick, get a grip.

Thankfully, Rosalie was blissfully unaware of the filthy thoughts running through my brain. Actually, she seemed more impressed that I knew a little something about the bee situation. Any moron with an internet connection knew that the bees were dying worldwide due to overzealous chemical companies and their pesticides. But I had dug a bit deeper last night in the hotel.
 

I wanted to be prepared. I wanted to impress her.

And not just because I was getting paid to.

I sipped my pint and watched her. I could not figure out a way to get her alone so I could paw at her. And it was too soon. Even if she drank twelve of those pints, I think she would run if she knew what I was thinking about.